Pay Equity – Let’s Level the ‘Paying Field’ (Part One)

Most people believe that Pay Equity Month is in April because of income taxes. That’s not so. It’s actually because women literally have to work roughly three and a half months into the following year to make comparably what our male counterparts make. April is pay equity month to shine a light on the inequality of our pay scale.

This topic is so important to me that I have dedicated the entire month to talking about it. Please be sure to tune in to my Focus Forward interview, watch my tips, read the other parts to this blog and watch out for my Social Media posts. All of these will give a bigger picture of the challenges that we are facing and if you need help leveling the paying field, contact me. This month, I’m offering a complimentary 30-minute coaching consultation to women who want to start getting the results they deserve. Sign-up for a Coach Chat™ with me.

Why do Women Make Less Money?

Different people say different things, but what I believe is that women don’t ask. What’s really fascinating is when young women come out of college or right into the workforce the ‘paying field’ (not the playing field) is level. By the first or second promotion at work, the ‘paying field’ starts to radically change. When you look at young women coming out of college as opposed to women who have exited the workforce you would expect that the salary increases would be similar. What happens is very often the young women just don’t ask. They don’t ask for what they want, they don’t ask for what they deserve, and that’s a big problem.

Is it Cultural?

Women are culturally trained not to ask for what we need and deserve. We are trained, or maybe wired might be a better word, to take care of others first. If you were to look at a woman who has children, she will negotiate and go to the mat for those kids in ways that would blow your mind but she will not do it for herself.  Women tend to focus outwardly on others as opposed to focusing inwardly on themselves.

Earning Less has a Huge Life-Long Impact

Very often women have sole responsibility for themselves and others. We have lot of single-family households where the woman is the primary breadwinner. Statistics show that women live longer than men. Earning less means they have less money in retirement. Plus, they live longer, they take care of more people often caring for elderly parents and sometimes their siblings, they take care of their children and then they’re trying to take care of themselves. What happens is women are often finding themselves without enough money or worse, living in poverty. It all starts with your salary. That’s why this is so important.

Time is Money for Women Also

Women tend to not put a value on their time. We equate the things we do as free because it’s not something that we have to pay for. However, we do actually pay because our time is money. Women need to re-think how they look at their time.

Don’t be afraid to say “No”

We’re constantly asked to do things and we say yes to many of those things. You know the old saying, “You want something done, give it to a busy person.” Even better, ask a busy woman. We make things happen but we need to learn how to be strategic in what we say yes to. If we become conscious of those decisions, we can do the things that have the highest value and give us the biggest return on investment (ROI).  Women would be further ahead if they started making a clearer relationship between their time and ROI.

Make an investment that pays off

Women invest in others but they don’t typically invest in self-development that will help them get the money they deserve. However, when they do bite the bullet and invest in themselves they maximize the opportunity. As students, women move to the head of the class. As mentees, they soak up the advice they receive and when they are coached, they excel. The best news is their investment keeps paying dividends for the rest of their career.

Stay Tuned

This is a very important topic and I’ve decided to make this a three-part series. Stay tuned for more information and insights on what you can do to close the pay equity gap and level the ‘paying field.’

Speaker..Coach..Consultant

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